Woman of Substance

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Woman of Substance

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As the materials guru at design and consulting firm Ideo, Kara Johnson knows her stuff. Need a light magnetic substance? She'll suggest nickel foam. A highly conductive fabric that's soft? Try copper-nylon cloth. To make finding the right materials easier, she's building a master library of samples linked to a database of properties and manufacturing processes. Designers at the firm in Palo Alto, California, can comb through the library to find what they need for, say, a new medical device or a kitchen whisk. "I want to change the materials industry," says Johnson, 28. "Designers need materials to be inspirational, to break a train of thought and break a traditional boundary of a product form or surface."